


i'm like dropping hints that i'm ladybug

by PhantomPierceOkamoto



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Dorks in Love, F/M, Fluff, Friendship, Identity Reveal, ML Ultimate Guess Who Challenge, i don't know what to tag
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-14
Updated: 2017-03-14
Packaged: 2018-10-05 05:49:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10299026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PhantomPierceOkamoto/pseuds/PhantomPierceOkamoto
Summary: "...I'm Ladybug."In which Marinette tries to get Adrien to figure out her secret identity. She was not counting on him being this oblivious.





	

Marinette detransformed, Tikki popping up and landing in her outstretched hand. Tikki sighed, obviously exhausted, but managed to smile up at the almost equally exhausted girl. 

“I’m sorry the fight lasted so long,” Marinette apologized, stricken to see her kwami so utterly spent. She pulled out a cookie wrapped in a napkin, feeding it to Tikki. 

“Not your fault,” Tikki shook her head, kindly, accepting the cookie with a bright smile. Marinette smiled in response, then let Tikki go back into her bag to rest. 

She glanced out of the alleyway, looking both right and left. Then she stepped out, hurrying towards her home. The avenue was dark, light trickling across the buildings from street lamps and windows. Though the sun hadn’t quite completely set, the stars twinkled overhead. 

She was a couple blocks from her house, and was contemplating the logistics of sneaking into her home unnoticed, when she saw a flash of movement. Eyes drawn to the shadow, she realized it was Chat Noir, dashing into the alleyway beside her. 

Eyes widening, she tried to get away from the situation. She couldn’t be seen out so late, and she didn’t want to accidentally find out his identity. Well, suggesting she knew him at all in civilian clothing. Still, she needed to get out quickly. 

She heard a small voice, realizing it was probably Chat’s kwami. She scurried towards her house, but not before hearing, “I’m sorry Plagg, I’ll let you rest for a moment. But I don’t have cheese right now, and we have to go home without raising suspicion. Please try to hang on.”

She recognized that voice. Of course, it was Chat, but just a little different. Still, it sounded so familiar in the inflections, in the enunciated letters and sounds. She tried to move forward, refusing to let herself see him. 

Unfortunately, her luck ran out. 

_Adrien._

She saw him walking out of the alley, and her heart stopped. She couldn’t afford to freeze, or be caught. So she kept moving, refusing to let herself stop. 

“Marinette,” Tikki whispered, peaking her head out of the bag. “I know you’re panicking, but his kwami needs food.”

“I wasn’t supposed to know his identity,” Marinette responded, barely processing her kwami’s words.

“…I know. But please. You can do this.”

Marinette stopped just in front of her house, trying to come up with a plan. Because yes, Tikki was right, Chat’s kwami needed food. And Adrien needed to get home before his father noticed he was missing. 

_Chat needs to get home. Adrien’s kwami._

_Adrien is Chat Noir._

She shook her head, steeling her nerves. He was walking in her direction, so she waved him over. 

“Marinette?” he called. “You’re out pretty late.”

“I went on a little walk,” she fibbed, hoping it sounded plausible. She refused to stutter, not now. “Did you want something…to eat? From the bakery? Because, you know, I live here and I can, um, get you something.”

He nodded hastily, and Marinette knew why. “That would be great. Ah, would you…by any chance have camembert cheese? I know that’s a bizarre request…”

She thought for a second, before nodding. “I should. Wait here, I’ll get you some.”

She hurried inside, stumbling into her parents. “Sweetie, why are you down here?” her mother asked. 

“Ah, wanted to…go for a walk. Yeah. With...cheese. Could I check the refrigerator?” 

Her parents looked taken aback (quite rationally), but agreed nonetheless. Marinette thanked them, before hurrying into the kitchen to grab some of the camembert that rested in the drawer of the fridge. 

She cut a piece out, pulling it into a napkin, then ran back outside. Adrien was waiting, looking down the street, seemingly lost in thought. She tapped his shoulder, and he turned towards her. 

“Thank you so much,” he said, gratefully. His eyes shone, and Marinette would’ve melted in any other situation. She mentally berated herself for not realizing it sooner, just how "Chat-like" he was. 

She paused. But wait, Adrien _didn’t_ really act like Chat all the time, if she really thought about it. Suddenly, her crush felt exactly like that–a crush. Shallow. Did she even _know_ him?

“Marinette?”

Maybe not. But she wanted to. And really, he was her partner, after all. “Yeah, ah, sorry! And anytime. If you ever need anything, like at all, I’m here.”

His worry faded into gentleness, and Marinette’s stomach twisted in the best way. “Thank you, Marinette. The same for you.” He started walking away, and Marinette went back inside. 

She ran upstairs, and let Tikki come out of her bag. “Tikki,” she said urgently. “I’m going to make him realize my identity.”

She sighed. “I understand. Now that you know his, it’s only fair.” Tikki looked at her curiously. “You’re not…just going to tell him?”

Marinette shook her head. “I want him to figure it out. I should’ve realized, considering how much I care for both of them. Well, him. You know what I mean. I want to give him a chance to figure it out.”

Tikki giggled. “Alright, then.”

* * *

_Plan A: Use Akuma Attack Details_

The next morning, Marinette hurried to school. As usual, she was a bit behind schedule, but while dashing, made it into her classroom on time. 

“Good morning!” she greeted Adrien. 

“Good morning,” he responded, smiling and waving. 

Alya looked impressed at Marinette’s lack-of-stumbling. Marinette grinned at her before hurrying into her seat. 

When Alya started talking about last night’s attack, Marinette joined in excitedly. She even surprised Alya with how much she knew, from the attacks they used to the way Chat had broken the akumatized object. 

“Wow, Marinette! I didn’t know you were so involved in the Ladyblog!” Adrien commented, who seemed to have been listening to the conversation. 

Alya grinned. “Neither did I,” she said, raising an eyebrow. 

Marinette laughed nervously, and felt silent chuckling in her purse. “Oh…yeah! Definitely. That’s how I know so much.”

_Plan B._

* * *

_Plan B: Ladybug Themed Clothes_

Marinette looked at herself in the mirror, practically wincing. She liked red…but not like _this_. 

“I think you look great!” Tikki chirped, giggling lightly. 

The deep red shirt with black ladybug spots was extremely out of her comfort zone, especially paired with the Ladybug hair clips Alya had given her. She really hoped this worked, otherwise she would never live this down. 

She walked to school, raising a couple of eyebrows between her parents and friends. 

“Finally admitting to a Ladybug obsession?” Alya questioned. 

“Something like that, yeah,” Marinette responded nervously. A glance over her shoulder showed Adrien had seen. And heard her comment. He didn’t look remotely surprised. 

_Oh great, plan B down the drain._

* * *

_Plan C: Cat Puns_

Marinette spent about an hour and a half online, looking up cat puns and groaning the entire time. 

“These are _awful!_ ” she moaned, Tikki trying her best not to laugh at Marinette’s obvious distress. 

“Are you sure you don’t want to just tell him?”

Marinette shook her head, resolute. “No. This has to work.”

She returned to school after finishing lunch, praying that it would work. This was an awful blow to her pride, she’d admit. She never thought she would have to make the same awful puns as her partner. 

Adrien was busy writing when she entered the classroom. He looked up, smiling at her. “Hey, did you finish the literature homework?” he asked. 

“Ah, yeah. It _litter-ally_ took me an hour,” Marinette forced out, having trouble meeting his eyes. 

He blinked, but continued as if she hadn’t said anything out of the ordinary. “I feel like it’ll never get done at this rate,” he admitted. 

“Not with that _cat-itude!_ ” Marinette responded, fluidly. “I’m _paw-sitive_ you can do it. You’re very… _claw-ver_.”

He chuckled. “Showing an interest in Chat Noir, as well?” He shook his head. “The last one was a stretch.”

She flushed from the tips of her ears to the ends of her toes. She flashed him an embarrassed smile before hurrying to her seat and dropping her head to the table. 

* * *

_Plan D: Her Earrings_

Marinette tied her hair up into a bun, which she admittedly hadn’t done in a while. Tikki smiled, eyes gentle. 

“Your hair looks beautiful like that,” she told her. 

“Thank you, Tikki. I’m hoping I can accentuate the earrings,” she responded, smiling gently. 

“Why don’t you touch them every so often? That should help draw attention to them.”

“Good point! I just have to be careful not to raise other people’s suspicions as well.”

Marinette looked at herself one more time in the mirror before grabbing breakfast and hurrying to class. She walked in, drawing attention from the people sitting down. 

“Girl, you never told me you could rock a bun!” Alya exclaimed. 

Marinette blushed. “Aw, thanks Alya!” She looked over at Adrien, who was looking at her with a curious glance. She touched her earrings, rubbing them lightly, before turning back to talk with Alya. 

She noticed Adrien looking at her every once in a while, and every time he did, she would touch her earrings. Alya didn’t seem to notice, to Marinette’s relief. 

By the end of class, Marinette’s ears were practically sore from being touched. After class, Adrien tapped her shoulder. Marinette cheered internally, realizing he must’ve figured it out. 

“Marinette, are your ears sensitive to earrings?” he asked, genuinely looking concerned. “My mom had the same issue, but there are nickel-free earrings you can wear.”

Marinette’s heart dropped to her feet. “Oh,” she stuttered. “No, ah, that’s…no. They’re not…really.”

He frowned. “Oh, I see. Sorry for bothering you then.” He stepped away, grabbing his bag before walking out of the classroom. Marinette screamed internally, realizing Adrien was denser than she gave him credit for. 

* * *

At home and eating lunch, she could barely focus on her homework. “I’m out of ideas, Tikki,” she whined slightly. “I don’t know what to do.”

“Maybe…just tell him.”

Marinette sighed, pouting. “I think you’re right.”

“I think I am, too. I know it’s hard, but I do think it’s the best way if you really intend to reveal your identity.”

Marinette nodded. “Okay. I’ll talk to him after lunch.”

* * *

_Plan E: Just Tell Him_

Marinette kept rubbing her shoulder, nerves frayed. She was so anxious about telling him the truth, even though she knew this is what she wanted. 

She spotted him getting out of his car, bag on his shoulder. She hurried to him, heartbeat racing and knees shaking. 

“Adrien!” she called. He looked at her. “Sorry, this is so sudden. Can we just…could I talk to you for a second?”

“Oh, of course! What’s going on?”

She grabbed his arm before she could psych herself out, leading him behind the building, where there were no curious ears or prying eyes. 

“Marinette?”

She looked at his confused expression, trying to come up with the proper words to say. “So, I’m not really good with words if you hadn’t figured that out by now. I’ve tried and _tried_ but I couldn’t get you to realize so I’m just going to say it…” She paused, taking in a breath. “…I’m Ladybug.”

He blinked. Once. Twice. “You’re…?” he repeated, face now expressionless. 

“I’m Ladybug.” she repeated. She pulled her hair away from her face to show him her earrings again. 

He stared for a while longer, making Marinette grow more and more self-conscious. He took a deep breath, bringing a hand to rub the back of his neck. “Okay, yeah. I was starting to suspect that.”

Marinette’s jaw dropped. “You-? Since when?”

“Since that akuma. I mean, it was a bit late to be out. And you were just a block away from where the fight had been, and outside and willing to help? Kind of a weird coincidence.” 

She made a noise of shock. “I… _really?_ Since then? What about all my ridiculous attempts at being obvious?”

He chuckled. “Yeah, that helped. Sort of. It was a bit confusing though.” He pulled on his shirt, letting his kwami come out. “I guess you figured me out?”

She nodded, cheeks tinged pink. “I did. Tikki, you can come out now.” Tikki hurried out, rushing towards Plagg. As they talked, excited to see each other, the teens stared at each other. 

“So…what now?” Adrien asked. Marinette shrugged, with a sheepish smile. 

“I didn’t think this far ahead.”

He laughed, blushing himself. “Well…if we’re confessing things, could I also confess I like you? _Like_ you, like you.”

She flushed darker, looking at the ground. “I like you too,” she responded, her heart rate skyrocketing. A look back up showed her the most wide grin she had ever seen on his face, probably ever. Her stomach twisted again.

“Cool,” he said, eyes sparkling. 

“Cool,” she repeated. 

They laughed together, joining hands as they did. They let their kwamis hide again, before walking into school. 

“At least we have an excuse for being behind school,” Marinette noted. 

“If anyone asks, we can say I asked you out. If that’s okay?” Adrien added, a hopeful smile pulling at his lips. 

She blushed again, nodding. “I’d like that,” she replied, looking up at him. 

He grinned back, shifting his hand to intertwine their fingers. And suddenly, revealing their identities felt like the best idea she had ever had. 

Even if Marinette would have to deal with Alya’s increased pestering about the "Ladybug obsession”.


End file.
